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Playbook · Customer research

Plan a customer interview

Prepare an interview plan, ask neutral questions and record what you hear so the findings can inform a business decision.

What you’ll prepare

A short interview plan: the decision you need to make, who to speak with, what to ask and how you’ll handle the findings. Use interviews to explore experiences and needs, not to pitch your offer.

1. Start with the decision

Write down the business decision and what you need to learn before making it. Keep the research question separate from the questions you ask participants.

For example, deciding whether to change a service might require understanding where customers struggle today. That does not mean asking them to design the new service for you.

2. Choose relevant participants

Describe the experience someone needs to have for the conversation to be useful. Include relevant variation, not just your most enthusiastic customers.

Plan recruitment around your question and access needs. There is no single interview count that guarantees enough evidence for every decision.

3. Prepare neutral prompts

Illustrative questions, not customer quotes

Start with a specific recent experience. Ask what happened, what they considered and what mattered. Leave room for answers you did not expect.

Remove the assumption

Avoid: “Was our booking process frustrating?” Try: “Talk me through the last time you booked. What happened?”

Ask about experience

Avoid: “Would you buy a faster service?” Try: “The last time you needed this service, what options did you consider?”

Follow up with “Can you give me an example?” or “What happened next?” Pilot the guide with a colleague and revise confusing or leading questions.

4. Plan consent and notes

Explain the purpose, what participation involves, how notes or recordings will be used and who can access them. Make clear that participation is voluntary and people can skip questions or stop.

Obtain informed consent before starting and permission before recording. Agree an appropriate retention period and protect identifying information. Follow the privacy and legal requirements that apply to your research.

Decide who will interview and who will take notes. Arrange any access support and check the setting or call equipment beforehand.

5. Listen, then review

Use the guide as a prompt, not a script to rush through. Listen without selling, allow pauses and ask for concrete examples.

After each session, separate what the participant said or did from your interpretation. Compare conversations, look for contradictions and record what remains uncertain.

Use the findings to refine your next decision or research question. Interviews can reveal experiences and possible patterns; they do not establish how common those patterns are across a market.

Before you start

  • Have a decision and learning questions written down.
  • Define relevant participant criteria and a recruitment plan.
  • Prepare and test your discussion guide.
  • Agree consent, recording, note-taking and data handling.
  • Decide when and how you’ll review the findings.

Customer interview FAQs

How many customer interviews should I plan?

Start with a focused round, review what you learn and decide what gaps remain. The number depends on your research question and how varied your customers are. Repeated themes can guide further research, but interviews alone do not show how common a need is across your market.

Do I need to record customer interviews?

No. You can take notes if recording is unnecessary or the participant prefers not to be recorded. Get informed consent to participate either way. If you record, ask permission first and explain access, use and retention. Follow the privacy and recording rules that apply.

What questions should I avoid in a customer interview?

Avoid questions that suggest the answer, combine several questions at once or ask people to predict what they would buy. Ask one neutral question at a time about a specific experience, then follow up to understand what happened and why.

How do I turn interview findings into a business decision?

Organize observations around your original research questions. Look for similarities, differences and evidence that challenges your assumptions. Separate what you heard from what you infer, then identify what other evidence you need before committing to a change.

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